The Morning After
by fawkesieladyandEd
Summary: Bobby tries to help Darien cope with what has happened


THE MORNING AFTER:  
  
TITLE: The Morning After  
AUTHOR: Mandy Engle AKA fawkesieladyandEd  
EMAIL: gunslinger_sk@yahoo.com  
SUMMERY: This is a sequel to The Other Side. Bobby tries to help Darien cope with   
what has happened.  
RATING: PG-13 for adult language  
DISCLAIMER: The Invisible Man and all it's characters are not mine. I do not own   
them in any way shape or form. They are the property of sci-fi and their writers.   
I am not making any money from this fic, it was written purely for fun and for the   
enjoyment of myself and others.   
Thanks much,  
Enjoy…  
THE MORNING AFTER  
  
Darien opened his eyes slowly. He squinted against the light and looked around.   
He was in the keep.  
"Oh, good. You're awake." Claire said as she rushed over to him.  
She wasn't sure what he would remember and what his brain would block out, so she   
didn't want to say anything that would do him more harm than good.  
"Yeah. How long have I been out?"   
"Three full days." Bobby said from the corner. He had wanted to be there when   
Darien woke up, but he didn't want to be the first person he saw. So he sat in a chair in   
the corner of the lab.  
Darien sat up wincing at the pain he felt. He put his hands on the sides of the chair and   
gently lifted himself up and hissed.  
He looked at Claire then at Bobby. He was happy that the hell he had gone through was   
over and all he had left to deal with was the aftermath, but he wondered how much they   
knew. He knew that Bobby had come in the room and had gotten Eberts to take the   
pillow away from his face, but what did Claire know? What had she seen?   
As visions of his nightmare flashed in his head, he was filled with shame and he looked at   
the floor.   
Claire took a step closer and put her hand on Darien's shoulder. He brushed her hand off   
and took a step to the side.  
"No no no, I'm okay." He said quickly. He looked up at her then quickly turned   
his head away again. "I just wanna go home for awhile. I'll be back tomorrow." He took   
a step forward and closed his eyes tight against the pain, and let out a small grunt. He   
began walking again slowly, and trying not to show the pain that even the smallest step   
caused.  
"Hey partner." Hobbes called after Darien as he stepped into the hallway.  
Darien turned but didn't look up. "Yeah?" He asked.  
"Your car is still in the shop. I'll give you a ride."   
Bobby walked over to Darien and clapped him on the shoulder. Darien quickly stepped   
away from Bobby's hand.   
"Look, just… just… don't do that please." Darien said. This time he did look up,   
but he couldn't find the strength to look in Bobby's eyes.   
"Okay, sorry." Bobby said softly. He had heard of women becoming afraid of   
men and even physical contact with anyone after being raped, and he wondered if that   
was happening to Darien.   
~~  
Darien gently sat himself down in the seat of the van. He inhaled through   
clenched teeth as he sat down completely, putting his full weight on his posterior.  
Bobby climbed into the van and looked over at Darien. He didn't know what to say. The   
way Darien looked, the way he was acting, hurt Bobby. They had been partners for over a   
year and they had gotten closer over that time. Bobby wanted to do what he could to help   
Darien regain some of his dignity, but he didn't know how. He started the van and they   
rode in silence. Darien hissed at every bump they hit.  
"You need anything, you want me to come up with you?" Bobby asked as he   
pulled the van into the spot closest to the door.  
"No. I'm okay Hobbes. I don't need you to baby me, I'm fine."  
"Okay. See you later then."  
"Yeah."  
Bobby watched as Darien opened the door and slowly got out of the van. He knew that   
Darien would need somebody someday. Right now he was just trying to deal with things   
on his own. Bobby would be there when Darien needed someone to talk to.   
~~  
Darien unlocked his door and walked into his apartment. He leaned against the   
door and tried to calm the muscles that were shaking inside of him. He closed his eyes   
and took a few deep breaths before opening them and focusing on the beer bottles on the   
counter.   
Darien pushed himself off the door and walked to the kitchen, stopping at the counter. He   
picked up one of the empty beer bottles and looked at it. He remembered inviting Eberts   
into his home that night, he had talked to him and laughed with him. He had even let him   
spend the night on his couch. He thought of the phone call he had gotten that night, and   
wondered if this would have happened then if Bobby hadn't called.  
"You God damn, mother fucking, son of a bitch!" Darien yelled as rage filled   
him.  
He threw the bottle against the wall and watched it shatter and sprinkle shards of glass all   
over the floor. His eyes stung with tears as he picked up another bottle and smashed it on   
the wall as well.   
"I swear to God I'll kill you!" He yelled as another bottle shattered on the wall.  
He picked up the bottles and threw them one by one across the room and watched as they   
hit the wall and burst.   
When all the bottles were broken, and the rage still filled him, he went to the drawer and   
took out a knife and ran to the couch. He stabbed the cushions and ripped out the stuffing.  
He could no longer find the words to express his anger and all he had left to do was   
bellow at the top of his lungs like an enraged bull. As he continued his assault on the   
couch, visions flashed in his head. The knife slashed at the couch, faster and with more   
force with every flash.   
He threw the knife, and the blade hit the wall with such force that the hilt was left   
vibrating.   
He ran around the room as the tears flowed down his face, destroying everything in his   
path.   
When his energy was spent, he slowly walked to the middle of the room and dropped to   
his knees. He laid down on his side and closed his eyes. His breathing was heavy and his   
face was sticky with drying tears. He wanted to go into the bathroom and take a hot   
shower, but his body was too weak, he had no choice but to lay there.  
~~  
Bobby walked up the stairs to Darien's apartment. He knew that Darien would tell   
him that he was ok and that he didn't need anybody, but Bobby wanted to be there   
anyway.  
He knocked on the door, lightly at first, but there was no answer. He knocked harder but   
there was still no answer.   
Bobby reached for the doorknob and turned it, the door was unlocked.   
"Holy shit." He exclaimed as he opened the door and walked into Darien's   
apartment.   
He looked around at the destroyed apartment before noticing Darien lying on the floor   
curled into a ball.  
"Fawkes, you ok?" Bobby asked as he slowly approached his partner.  
Darien rolled over onto his back and looked at him. Bobby was shocked at what he saw.   
Darien's eyes were black as if he hadn't slept in days, and his skin was pale.   
"I'm fine Hobbes. I told you that." Darien said weakly.  
"I know, but I came by anyway."  
Bobby put his hands under Darien's back and helped him up.  
"Come on buddy." He said as he lifted Darien into a sitting position.  
Darien grunted as he sat up.  
"Hobbes, go home. Leave me alone."  
"Can't do that."  
"Yes you can, there's the door, go out like you came in."  
"No. I'm not gonna leave you here alone."  
"Hobbes, I…"  
"No Fawkes. I'm not leaving. I'm your partner and partners do for each other, I'm   
doing for you by not leaving you here alone." He looked around. "You do all this?" He   
asked.  
"Yeah, I guess I did."  
"Why?"  
"I had to get him out of this place. He had been here Hobbes. I fuckin' invited   
him into my God Damn home."  
"When?" Bobby asked concerned.  
"The night you called. He gave me a ride home cause my car wouldn't start. I   
invited him in for a few beers. He slept on my couch Hobbes."  
Bobby looked at the couch again and understood why it was ripped to shreds.   
Bobby looked away from the couch, unsure of what to do next.   
"Come on, get up." He said as he put his hands under Darien's arms and helped   
him stand.  
Darien stood, he felt comfortable with Hobbes now. He knew that Hobbes was the one   
that had saved his life. If Bobby hadn't gone into the room, or had been a few minutes   
later, Darien would be dead now, and he knew that.   
"You hungry Fawkes?" Bobby asked softly.  
"No." Darien said tonelessly.  
"Thirsty?"  
"No."  
"You need anything?" Bobby was trying to help him, but Darien wasn't letting   
him in.  
"Yes Hobbes. I do need something." He said as he looked into Bobby's eyes.  
"What?"  
"I need to forget all that has happened to me. I need this damn pain in my fucking   
ass to go away. I need to stop smelling him everytime the fucking wind blows. I need to   
watch Eberts be killed, and I know how I want it done too. I need all this rage and shame   
to leave me alone."  
"Fawkes," Bobby said gently. He didn't know what to say. He wanted to put his   
arms around his friend and make everything better, but he couldn't do that.   
"I need my life back." His voice cracked and fresh tears flowed down his face.  
Bobby bit his lip and put his hand on Darien's shoulder. Darien leaned in and laid his   
head on Bobby's shoulder.   
Bobby put his arms around Darien and hugged him tight as his partner cried on his   
shoulder.   
Bobby walked Darien to the bed and sat with Darien in his comforting embrace for a half   
an hour. He would have sat there with him all night if Darien had needed him to.   
"Bobby." Darien said as he pulled away from Hobbes. " If I hadn't gone to his   
house, if I hadn't been so interested to see the side of him he never showed, this wouldn't   
have happened."  
"Darien, don't say those things. You can't do that to yourself. What happened was   
not your fault. You went to his house because you are a good person Darien. He wasn't at   
work that day, he never missed work. You went there to see if he was feeling alright. You   
can't blame yourself."  
"If it wasn't my fault, why the hell do I feel so damn guilty about it?"  
"Darien, I don't know. I don't have all the answers to your questions. But I do   
know that I am here for you and I am your friend."  
"Thanks Bobby."  
"You're welcome Darien."  
~~  
Darien was asleep again. He had fallen asleep in Bobby's arms while Bobby   
comforted him with another of his strong hugs.  
Bobby sat on the edge of the bed looking around at the destroyed apartment. Darien had   
demolished even the things he held dear.  
The couch was the worst of it all, but he had done major damage to everything.  
Pages were torn out of his quote books, and the books themselves had been scattered   
across the floor. The curtains were ripped off the window, the pictures thrown off the   
walls, the stereo was lying on the floor in pieces, his cd's busted and thrown around the   
room. Shards of glass from the broken bottles reflected the light onto the wall causing an   
eerie glow.   
Bobby got up off the bed slowly and walked to the kitchen. He picked up the broom and   
dustpan and began cleaning the mess.   
~~  
"You're still here." Darien said softly as his eyes focused on Bobby.  
Bobby sat up quickly, he had fallen into a doze and hadn't heard Darien sit up.  
"Yeah buddy. I told you I wasn't going to leave."  
"Bobby, I appreciate that you want to help, but you don't have to stay here. I'll be   
fine."  
"I know you'll be fine, I never doubted that. But I don't mind staying here."  
Darien looked away from Bobby, he still wasn't capable of looking him in the eye for   
very long.  
"You cleaned?" He asked.  
"Yeah, it was a mess. It was depressing as hell for me, so I cleaned it up."  
Darien stood and walked slowly to the bathroom. Bobby watched him until the bathroom   
door was closed, shutting off his view.  
~~  
Darien turned the knob and the water poured from the showerhead. When the   
temperature was right, he took off his clothes and threw them in the wastebasket. He   
stepped under the water and sighed as the heat ran down his body. He closed his eyes and   
rubbed his face, the nightmare was lasting longer than he had thought it would. He had   
thought that once Eberts was put away and out of sight, he would be back to normal, but   
he had been wrong.  
He opened his eyes, picked up his razor, and sat down.   
"I want this to be over." He said softly to himself.  
He twisted the head of the razor and took out the blade. He touched the razorblade to his   
wrist and held it there for a moment before taking it away. He brushed away the tears that   
had fallen and put the blade on the side of the tub.  
Darien had never really prayed in his life, he wasn't even sure how to do it. But   
he knew he needed to talk to someone, and he wasn't ready to tell Bobby that he had   
thoughts of taking his own life.  
"I don't want to die, but there is nothing left to live for." He began as he looked   
up at the ceiling. "I want this to be over with, I want to be at peace. Let me go, don't stop   
me." He picked up the razor again and placed it on his wrist. He poked the corner of the   
blade into the skin on the inside is his wrist. Blood flowed from the puncture wound as he   
began to pull the blade up his arm.   
~~  
"Darien!" Bobby shouted as he burst through the door. He grabbed Darien's hand   
before the blade had even cut an inch long slit into Darien's arm.   
"What the hell are you doing Fawkes?" Bobby asked angrily once he had the   
blade away from Darien.  
"I'm ending the pain Bobby. I'm slaying the InvisibleMan."  
"You can't do that Darien." Bobby said as he walked to the closet to get a towel.   
Bobby walked to the bathtub, turned off the water, and helped Darien stand. He wrapped   
the towel around Darien's waist and helped him to the bed.  
"Darien, I won't let you kill yourself. You're too good for that." Bobby said as he   
sat Darien down on the bed.  
"Bobby," Darien said as he stared at the floor between his feet. "I can smell him   
on my skin. I can feel his hands touching me. I see his face everytime I close my eyes. I   
can't live like this. You can't expect me to want to live like this."  
Bobby sat on the bed beside Darien.   
"We're going to handle this Darien. I'm going to help you get past this. I don't   
know what to do for you. I can't imagine the stuff you're going through right now. But I   
will help you get your life back to normal. Just, don't quit on me now Fawkes." He   
looked away for a moment, then looked back with tears in his eyes. "You're the only   
friend I've got."  
Darien closed his eyes and put his hand to the back of his neck.  
"I need to get away from here. I can see him in everything I look at and I can feel   
him in everything I touch. Take me away from here Bobby, I don't care where we go, as   
long as it isn't here."  
"Okay buddy. Get dressed and we'll go."  
Darien dressed as quickly as he could without causing himself too much pain. He threw   
on a pair of old sweat pants he used to work out in, and a tee shirt.   
~~  
Darien stared out the window as the van drove down a busy street. He couldn't   
look at anyone, he moved his eyes past the people on the sidewalk. He closed his eyes   
and let the quicksilver flow from his pores, he didn't want to be seen.  
"Darien, why did you do that?"  
"Because I can feel the eyes staring at me. I don't want to be here."  
"Be where? In the van?"  
"No, on earth. I don't want to be here where everyone knows what has   
happened."  
"No one knows buddy. No one is staring at you." Bobby said softly as he looked   
over to where Darien was sitting.  
"Doesn't matter. It feels like they know."  
"Ok." Bobby said as he turned on to a side street.  
~~  
The sun was going down as they drove down a deserted piece of dirt road.   
Darien was asleep again. Bobby knew that sleeping so much wasn't good for Darien, but   
he felt there was nothing he could do.  
The sky was dark as Bobby pulled the van into a gravel driveway.  
"Hey partner." He said as he gently shook Darien's shoulder.  
Darien opened his eyes and looked around.  
"Where are we?" He asked sleepily.  
"The only place I thought you'd be comfortable."  
Darien looked around again and recognized his surroundings.   
"My uncle's cabin." He said softly.  
Darien got out of the van and walked up to the porch. He touched the railing and lowered   
his head.  
"Come on." Bobby said as he lightly tapped Darien on the shoulder.  
Bobby pushed the door open and walked into the dark room.  
"Damn it's dark in here." Bobby said as he hit his shin on the corner of   
something.  
"There should be a lantern to your right." Darien said without turning toward the   
door.   
Darien closed his eyes and put his hand to the back of his neck again. He could feel the   
beginnings of quicksilver madness flowing through him, but he wasn't concerned with   
getting a shot.  
~~  
"You gonna come in Fawkes?" Bobby asked as he walked out onto the porch   
three hours after they arrived at the cabin.  
"Not yet." Darien said as he looked toward the sky.  
He wanted the madness to overtake him, he felt that it would be his only escape.  
"Alright. Well, I'm gonna hit the sack, you need anything before I go?"  
"No Hobbes, I'm fine."  
Bobby looked at him for a moment, he wanted to know what was going threw his head.   
He wanted to know if Darien was thinking about making another attempt at suicide. After   
telling himself that Darien wouldn't try to kill himself in a place where his life had been   
so happy, Bobby went to bed.  
Darien looked down at his tattoo and saw that there were only four green sections   
left. He turned toward the cabin, and went inside.  
~~  
Darien had stayed outside for as long as he could, he was getting tired and wanted   
to go to bed. The smell of the cabin hurt his heart, everywhere he looked held a memory   
of him and Kevin. Ghosts of his childhood haunted every corner of the place. He could   
almost hear Kevin's voice, he could almost smell him, and he could almost see him.   
Darien sat down hard on the couch and let the memories wash over him, they hurt him   
and made him miss Kevin even more, but at least his mind was off of Eberts.   
"Hello Fawkes."  
Darien's head whipped around at the sound of that voice. He looked toward the table.  
He saw himself sitting at the table and Arnaud was hovering around him talking about a   
guy who lived on the thirteenth floor of a high rise. Darien watched the scene play before   
his eyes until the players vanished.   
"I'm gonna get you, you little buttwipe."   
Darien turned his head toward the door of the room Bobby was asleep in.  
He saw himself and Kevin running in circles. Kevin shouted curses that only he could   
hear, while the younger version of himself teased his brother with a piece of paper that he   
held in his hand.   
Young Kevin and Darien disappeared as Kevin tackled Darien to the floor.  
"Darien Fawkes!"  
Darien looked toward the kitchen. His aunt Cilia was standing in front of the sink with   
her hands on her hips. There was broken glass all over the floor. Young Darien lowered   
his head as his aunt gave him his punishment for breaking the glass and not cleaning it   
up. The vision faded as aunt Cilia took young Darien into her arms and hugged him.  
Darien sighed at the memories that had escaped his mind and played themselves   
over and over again in front of him.  
He laid back on the couch and closed his eyes, the only way to avoid the memories, was   
to sleep.  
~~  
"Darien." A voice said in the distance.  
Darien sat up and looked around for the person. He saw no one.  
"Hello?" He called.  
"Darien." The voice said again.  
"Kevin? Is that you?"   
"Come with me Darien."  
"Where are you?"  
"Here. Come outside."  
Darien walked toward the door cautiously. He reached for the doorknob and turned it.   
"What the hell?" He asked as he saw what was behind the door. He was looking   
into the original quicksilver lab.  
"Darien." Kevin said as he stepped in front of him.  
"Kevin?" Darien said. He couldn't believe what he was seeing.  
"Yes Darien. I need to tell you something."  
"What?" He asked.  
"Not here. Follow me."  
Darien followed his brother as he walked away.   
"Where are we going Kevin?" Darien asked as he jogged to catch up with him.  
"Shh." He put a finger to his lips and Darien quieted.   
Darien and Kevin walked in silence.  
"This is where it will happen." Kevin said finally.  
"What?" Darien asked confused.  
"Darien, I know."  
"You know what Kevin?"  
"I know what was done to you."  
Darien looked away in shame. Even his dead brother knew what he had gone through.  
"No Darien. Look at me." Kevin said as he forced Darien's face up.   
Darien looked into his brother's eyes as the tears fell from his.  
"Darien, don't worry. It will all be taken care of. You will never be hurt again."  
"I don't…"   
"Shh, watch." Kevin said cutting him off.  
Darien watched the scene in front of him change from the lab to the agency's holding   
cell.   
"I can't show you what will happen, just the outcome. Look." He said as he   
pointed to the cot hanging on the wall of a cell.  
Darien walked up to the bars and looked at the person on the cot. It was Eberts and he   
was bleeding. His face was puffy and bruised, and it looked as if his legs had been   
broken. His breathing was shallow and quick as he held his crotch with one hand. The   
other hand dangled off the cot at the end of an arm that was dripping with blood.  
"Who… did I… was…" Darien couldn't form the sentence that was in his mind.  
"This is what will happen Darien. Do you want this? Do you want to be put in   
prison again?"  
"No. But I want this pain to end."  
"It will end, if you let Hobbes help you through it. You can't do this alone Darien,   
and this is what will happen to you if you try."  
Darien watched as Eberts disappeared and was replaced with someone else. He squinted   
to see who it was. He gasped when the face on the cot became clear. It was him.   
"What you went through will be a hundred times worse here Darien. You don't   
want this, I know you don't. Eberts will be punished Charlie will see to it, but if you take   
it into your own hands, you will be the punished."  
"Kevin, I just want to leave. I don't want to live in this world anymore. "  
"Darien, do you remember what Mother used to say to Dad? He who thinks of   
suicide thinks of Hell as his home."  
"I don't care Kevin. I don't care about anything anymore. I just want this to be   
over with."  
"I have done all I can. The choice is yours to make. I can't do it for you."  
"Kevin, Kevin wait."  
"Good bye Darien."  
"Kevin no!" Darien shouted as he watched his brother vanish into thin air.  
~~  
"Darien, Darien wake up buddy."  
Darien grunted and rolled over.  
"You alright Darien? You were having a nightmare."  
"I'm okay Bobby." Darien said as he looked up at Bobby.  
"You sure? That looked like a bad one."  
"Hobbes, I need a shot."  
Bobby picked up Darien's arm and looked at the inside of his wrist, only two sections left   
green.  
"Ah crap Fawkes, get in the van."  
Bobby took out his cell phone and dialed the keep.  
"This is the keeper, I'm away from my desk right now. You can leave a message   
or press one and ask the operator to page me."  
"Shit!" Bobby exclaimed as he pressed one.  
"Operator." A cheery voice said.  
"This is Robert Hobbes. Page the keeper, tell her to get to the keep and get a shot   
ready. This is very important, if you screw it up, I swear I will hurt you."  
"No need to be rude sir…"  
"Just do it. Now!" He hung up and ran to the van.   
Darien had his head on the back of the seat, his eyes were squeezed shut and he was   
groaning loudly.  
"Come on Darien, don't loose it on me now." Hobbes said as he rushed to start   
the van.  
~~  
The drive back to San Diego seemed longer than the drive to the cabin. Darien   
parked the van in front of the agency building at twenty minutes after noon. Bobby   
jumped out of the van and rushed to the passenger side. He opened the door and helped   
Darien out. Darien leaned on Bobby as they walked down the halls to the keep.   
"We're out of time here Claire. You got the shot?" Bobby said as the door to the   
lab slid open.  
"Right here." Claire almost yelled as she ran to the refrigeration unit and pulled   
out the needle.   
Bobby helped Darien up into the chair and stepped back to let Claire give him the shot.  
Darien grunted as the needle pierced his skin. His eyes closed and his head fell back   
against the chair.  
"Where have you been Bobby?" Claire asked as she checked Darien's tattoo.  
"I took him up to his uncle's cabin. That was the only place I could think to take   
him. He didn't want to stay at his apartment."  
Claire looked at Bobby. "I'm glad that you are supporting him. He needs someone to be   
his friend and I'm not sure if I'd be the first person he'd come to."  
"We all need friends Claire. I'm just happy to have Darien on my list of people to   
trust. I want him to feel the same about me."  
"I'm sure he does. He has trusted you through this, that shows that he holds you   
dear to him. That is rare. Many people don't trust anyone after something like this   
happens to them."  
"Well, I…"  
"What the hell is this!?" Claire asked angrily when she noticed that Darien's left   
wrist was in a gauze wrap.  
"He tried to, you know, he was going to slit his wrists."  
"You stopped him I assume."  
"Yeah. He was in the bathroom, I was in the living room. Something just told me   
to check on him. I did, and I found him with a razorblade in his arm."  
"Bobby, I am so glad you were there." She smiled.  
She jumped as her watch beeped.  
"Oh, I've got to go. I have a meeting downtown."  
"Go ahead. I'll stay here with him."  
"Thank you Bobby."   
She put her hand on his shoulder briefly and smiled at him before she left the lab.  
~~  
Darien lifted his head a few minutes after Claire left.  
"Feeling better?" Bobby asked.  
"Yeah. Thank you."  
"It's not a problem partner."  
Darien laid back again and sighed deeply.  
"Bobby," He said softly.  
"Yeah Fawkes?" Bobby asked as he walked to the chair.  
"I… um… I just wanted to thank you. You know, for being here with me through   
this. I can get through this Bobby, I can get past it. With you at my side."  
"I'll be here Fawkes. I'll be right there whenever you need me. Eberts is sure to   
go to trial for this and when he does, I'll be there in the court room with you every day."  
"Thank you." Darien said as he took Bobby's hand.  
"You're welcome partner." Bobby said as he put his other hand over Darien's.  
"I need to go talk to the official now. You be okay here by yourself?"  
"Yeah, I think I'm going to crash. I didn't get much sleep last night."  
"Okay. I'll be back later."  
"Alright." Darien said as he closed his eyes.  
~~  
Bobby walked out of the lab and Darien lifted his head to watch him leave.   
Darien laid his head back and smiled slightly. He had friends, there were people who   
cared for him. Bobby had proved that to him.  
He knew that his nightmare would pass. He knew that his life would go back to normal,   
because he had friends who cared enough about him to ease him through the pain, and   
emerge with him into the light of the other side.  
END  
  
There will be a part three…. Sometime in the near future. I hope you enjoyed reading this   
fic as much as I enjoyed writing it. :)  



End file.
